Page 58 of Fight
“Before we go back, I need to say something,” he says, his eyes serious, and I nod, “I love you so fucking much, Jynx. With every part of me, every broken and bruised part of me, absolutely fucking adores you, Jynx. You’re forever ours.”
My heart beats like a fucking drum, and emotions flood my throat, but I manage to reply, “Forever yours.”
I kiss him softly before I climb off and grab my leggings and underwear off the floor of the car and pull them on. Once I’m done, and we’re both dressed again, he turns to look at me and leans over the center console; I meet him halfway as he kisses me again.
“I love you,” he says softly.
“I love you, too,” I reply and then settle back into my seat as he turns the car around, and we start to head back to the estate. After a few moments of silence as I ask, “How late are we getting back?”
“I don’t think we are. I was watching as Ace handed out the rest of the cameras. He clearly knew that we weren’t as tech-savvy as some of the others because he gave them at least two more cameras each than he gave us.” Rip replies with an amused smirk.
I chuckle, “Yeah, that sounds about right. They’re setting some up at the docks, right?”
“Yeah, they are, although they can’t put too many up and risk them being seen.”
“Yeah, that makes sense.” I reply and then add, “At least we’re not going to be late for dinner. I have a feeling that my grandmother would not be amused if we were.”
Rip laughs and nods in agreement.
It’s not long until we get back to the house, Rome’s car following behind us, and the others already parked outside.
“Did you manage to get yours up, okay?” Rome asks as he and Mal meet us by the car.
Mal pulls me in for a quick kiss before letting me go so that I can answer.
“Yeah, well at least I think so. I pretty much left it to Rip since I was definitely going to break something,” I reply, making them all chuckle, as Rome pulls me close to him and kisses me softly.
“Are they all up and running, or do we need to head back out?” Rome asks as he follows us through the door, and we see all the others already seated at the table, which is laid out with steak, potatoes, sauce, and salads and instantly making my mouth water.
Ace pulls his eyes away from the food, which seems like an almost impossible task for him, as he replies, “Yeah, I’ve just finished checking them all, and they’re all where we need them to be. There shouldn’t be any blind spots now although we can’t guarantee that we’ve found them all. We have protected the town as much as possible and covered as many of the blind spots that we could find.”
“And you’ve done a damn good job too,” Gerald tells him, looking proud, “Now, enough work talk, you’ve got your Raven team coming tomorrow for the debrief, and you’re going to be busy from that point forward. But before all that, you need to get a good meal into you and relax.”
“Gerald is right as always,” Rome agrees with a smile, “let’s enjoy dinner and the rest of the evening before we have to get back into work mode tomorrow.”
After that we spend the rest of the evening doing just as Gerald suggested and Rome insisted that we do. My grandparents tell us stories about all of the other grandparents, and I become absolutely certain that no one else our age could possibly say that their grandparents have gotten up to half the shit that ours have.
By the time we all head up to bed, we’re happy and full and feeling extremely relaxed, ready to face our next challenge of ridding this town of the smugglers that have plagued it for fuck knows how long now. As I say good night to the others on the landing, deciding tonight to share Rip’s bed, I smile that my routine has changed from giving them all kisses and then going to bed to ensuring that I tell each one of them that I love them too.
I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of this, of my men, of my chosen family.
Once I’ve changed into one of Rip’s large shirts, I realise that I haven’t called Waverly and Micha for far too long, only managing the odd check-in text here and there. It’s most likely going to be a while before I have enough time to call them again, so I call them quickly, catching up and glad that Micha and the boys are okay too before I fall asleep wrapped up in Rip’s arms.
Chapter Twenty-One
Mason
The next morning we all meet down in the kitchen, where Demelza has already set out an elaborate breakfast for us. She seems to like feeding us, although so did my grandparents if I’m honest. It’s probably the only grandparent-like thing about them. They insist that we’re getting fed.
I give Jynx a kiss as I make my way past her to get to my own seat, and my heart skips as she looks up, smiling happily at me and making me feel seen. I don’t think I will ever stop being amazed by that.
“Now that everyone’s here,” Demelza starts, and my curiosity spikes, “Gerald and I were talking last night, and although we know that you are not planning the raid until tomorrow, we thought it may be best to go down to Ruth and Dexter’s tonight, that way you can have the house to yourselves and it will be easier for the Raven’s to get settled and learn about the plan. All of that sort of thing.”
“We pretty much just don’t want to get in your way, and Cecil invited us down for pre-mission drinks anyway,” Gerald chuckles.
I can’t help but join him; Ace’s grandad has a massive fucking personality, and it never ceases to amuse any of us. He’s wildly unpredictable, but not necessarily in a bad way.
I stay silent, as do the others, as we wait for Rome’s reply, “Yeah, that sounds great. At least then you won’t have to worry about getting down there ridiculously early in the morning since that’s when we’ll be heading out.”